1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a microscope device which irradiates an object with probe light and receives reflected light from the object to obtain an image of the object and, more particularly, to a microscope device capable of obtaining an image of an object such as a human body tissue having an extremely large proportion of scattering light.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A confocal microscope for obtaining an image of an object for a medical or industrial purpose for example is known.
In the known confocal microscope, a point light source, a position at which an object is focused and a pin hole provided before an image pickup plane are placed in a conjugate positional relationship with each other, and reflected light from an out-of-focus point deviating from the one focal point on the object can be excluded from image forming information. The confocal microscope is therefore capable of obtaining an image having a high S/N ratio and high contrast. Also, the confocal microscope can have a markedly improved resolution in the direction along the optical axis because the so-called optical sectioning effect can be improved. The resolution in a lateral direction of the confocal microscope can also be improved in comparison with ordinary optical microscopes.
Various confocal probe devices using the principle of such a confocal microscope have also been proposed (for example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2001-350098).
The confocal microscope has a number of improved effects but has a problem that restrictions are imposed on the freedom of device design, because it is necessary to adjust the pin hole plate to the predetermined position before the image pickup plane on condition that the above-mentioned three positions are set in a conjugate relationship, and because in ordinary cases there is a need to place the pin hole plate in a stage following the light source to form a point light source.